The present invention relates to calorimeters and more particularly to the means for accurately measuring energy of laser beams.
There exists a need for a simple and relatively low cost method of accurately measuring the energy levels of numerous scientific and industrial lasers. Calorimeters are a standard device used in most high-energy laser applications and their development. However, a calorimeter capable of measuring the laser energy with great precision and with a fast response time is often complex and tends to be expensive.
The prior art in this area of energy measurement for lasers typically use radiation detectors to measure the power of the laser beams. Such energy measuring devices have limited power ranges and limited accuracy due to the presence of detector noise. The use of a thermopile in laser power meters is also known as a common method to measure laser energy. These meters use a block of metal which is heated with the laser beam. The temperature rise in the metal block is used to determine the laser power. Accurate models of such devices are available but tend to be relatively expensive. The less expensive models have poorer accuracy.